Goslar health office warns: measles epidemic requires vaccination refreshment!

Goslar health office warns: measles epidemic requires vaccination refreshment!

Goslar, Deutschland - In the past few weeks, a measles epidemic in the United States has startled the health authorities. With over 1,000 sufferers and three deaths, the danger of this highly contagious disease is once again in focus. The health department of the Goslar district has therefore directed an urgent appeal to all those who are critical of vaccinations against measles: rethink your attitude! regionalheute.de reports that measles can be transferred through droplet infection. Even before the first signs occur, infected others can infect others. This shows how important protection against this disease is.

The current situation in the USA is alarming. It becomes increasingly clear that falling vaccination rates endanger the population. A study by the Stanford Medicine Institute showed that fewer and fewer children are being vaccinated, which increases the risk of severe outbursts. Forecasts indicate that if the vaccination rate is stabilized, so -called horror numbers of 850,000 measles cases and 2,500 deaths could become reality in the next 20 years. tagesschau.de shows that most sick people in the USA are unadorned, which underlines the urgency to boost the vaccination quotas.

The situation in Germany and Europe

The situation in Germany is not much better. According to an analysis, measles cases have fluctuated here in recent years, with the figures in 2021 relatively low in 2015 with only eight cases compared to 2,466. But as the German Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine ( dgk ), the number of measles infections worldwide increases by 20 percent last year. By 2023 there are estimates of a total of 10.3 million measles cases, of which 110,000 ends fatal, especially in children under the age of five.

A large part of the responsibility bears the vaccination. The protective size for measles vaccination is 93% after the first and 97% after the second vaccination. In Germany, a measles vaccination obligation has also been in place for certain groups of people since March 1, 2020. And yet around 1,000 cases have been reported in the Goslar district, in which the obligation to vaccinate was not fulfilled. It is advised to catch up and check the vaccinations.

The importance of the MMR vaccination

The STIKO (permanent vaccination commission) recommends the MMR combination vaccination (measles, mumps, rubella) in two doses for all children, although the first vaccination can be carried out at the age of 11 months. Adults who were born after 1970 and whose vaccination status is unclear should also be vaccinated. People who were born before 1970 most likely went through the measles and do not need vaccination. Resident children and general practitioners offer both advice and vaccinations.

It is clear that the topic of vaccination discussion and fear in many countries, including Germany, has become a serious danger to public health. With the return of the measles and the questions of conscience, the vaccinations, it remains crucial to make informed decisions and do as much as possible for themselves and the community.